Prodigy
by Mynerva
Summary: Growing up is tough for everyone, but for one mutant turtle-tot in particular it's harder than most. Hamato Yoshi's sons are especially gifted in an art he understands and feels more than capable to teach, but when it comes to providing Donatello the mental stimulus his eager mind craves, he's failing and it's causing rifts. Can they be bridged with help from an unlikely source?
1. Chapter 1

It had been a long night patrol and the four weary turtle teens meandered into their home, a bit bruised but no worse for wear. The Purple Dragon had been fairly active lately, their numbers having increased over the course of the past few months with many of the newer members undergoing their initiations. The turtle brothers had foiled a number of muggings, burglaries and acts of vandalism and forced a number of those new recruits to rethink their current life-path.

Donnie smiled as his two older brothers, in a rare moment of affection, congratulated each other on a good night's work, while Mikey, the youngest of the four made straight for the sofa and flicked on the TV.

"Just in time for Crognar," he declared happily before feasting on some stale pizza.

"You realise that pizza has been there most of the week?" Donnie asked, feeling nauseas when Mikey aimed a wide pizza-stained smile in his direction. "You're gonna make yourself ill. You're gonna make me ill!"

"You're back." Each of the brothers turned to where their father stood. Splinter was always happy to see them return in one piece but this time he seemed a little less happy about their arrival. His kind brown eyes held a sadness he seldom revealed leaving the brothers worried, Donnie more so since his fathers gaze seemed to settle on him.

"Is something wrong, sensei?" Leo asked pushing Raph away from the tussle they had started prior to their fathers address.

"Donatello, may I speak with you." Three sets of eyes immediately settled on the tallest of them and Donnie himself felt his stomach drop into his feet. For a moment he thought he had done something wrong and he frantically searched his memory for what that might be. It could have been anything from leaving some combustible materials out in the lab, eaten Splinter's stash of cookies or failed to put away the equipment away in the dojo. But as he searched his fathers eyes, he knew what it was.

"He's gone, isn't he?" Donnie knew the answer without hearing his suspicions confirmed. Splinter simply nodded, his head remaining bowed out of respect but a gentle furry hand fell on Donatello's shoulder.

"Who's gone?" Raph asked no longer able to stand the silence or contain his curiosity. Leo who was more sensitive to the intense emotions currently emanating from his brother and father, nudged Raph sharply with his elbow. "What?"

"I-its okay Leo…" Don found it difficult to speak at first, because of the lump that had started to choke him, but he quickly intervened before the situation became more violent. "Professor Holt."

"Who's that?" Mikey asked as he picked week old pepperoni out of his teeth and flicked it at Raph. Luckily for Mikey, Raph didn't notice.

"He was…a friend." Despite his control, Don felt his throat close up again and his eyes start to mist.

"So why have we never heard of him?" Raph asked and was again nudged by Leo. "Will you knock it off!"

"Silence!" Their father barked towards the trio and silence fell upon them once more.

"Can I be excused?" Don asked, his voice barely a whisper. The second he had permission he hurried to his room. He could feel every one watching and Mikey even called out his name, but Splinter quickly reined the youngest in, leaving Donnie to mourn in private.

He knew his brothers would be so confused by his reaction, after all they had never heard the name Professor Holt before today. It was a secret he had kept since he was eight years old… Just thinking about how far back he and the professor went made his heart ache even more and the tears finally came. Luckily he had already closed his bedroom door and locked it before he finally gave in and allowed himself to cry. Warm tears spilled down his beak, their salty taste bitter to swallow, but what was even harder to accept was the irony of the moment. Twelve years ago, the day he had met the professor had started with an eight year old Donatello running to his room to cry…


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N - Hi, the first few chapters are a little angsty but that will change later! I feel I just have to explain what Donnie is feeling and how serious and deep these feelings and insecurities go as they are integral to the plot as it progresses. I hope you enjoy this story, and if you're anything like me, you will need tissues as I've had some tears shed while writing this.**

 **I do not own TMNT sadly.**

 ***.*.***

With the door slammed shut and a stool and a few toys thrown at it in a feeble attempt to barricade it, Donnie fell to his knees sobbing. He hated them, all of them! His brothers were always so mean to him, they always teased him, taunted him any chance they got. Raph was the worst, he always said mean stuff. He was the one who made up the mean names, who said the hurtful things and the others would laugh, like it was the funniest thing ever! It was stupid. They were stupid.

With a sniff the little turtle boy sat back on his large feet, his long, skinny legs curled under him. His anger had abated enough now that he could feel control of his emotions and actions return through the haze that had settled over his young mind. It was a foolish move to run off, but things had gotten unbearable for the gentle natured youngster. Usually the names and the taunts would roll right off his shell, his curious nature and mind to full of questions and thoughts surrounding those questions to give his boisterous siblings much care. But lately, he was becoming more and more aware of how different he was to each of the other members of his family.

Leo, the oldest, was the perfect son; everything he did and wanted to do was to the delight of their father. Both shared a passion for Ninjitsu, meditation and the teachings and philosophical wisdom of previous masters. Spirituality and a kinship with nature and the world as a whole was a goal within their reach.

Mikey was the youngest and because of this he was given a certain amount of understanding when it came to their training. If he couldn't make a kick as high as it needed to be, their father would simply smile and encourage him to keep trying. The sparring matches were kinder and training for Mikey at least was a time to jump around and expend those endless energy reserves he seemed to have.

Raph was a powerhouse. His Ninjitsu was just as good as Leo's but while the oldest brother had near perfect form and fluidity, Raph had sheer hitting power and to receive a punch from Raph, meant you would be wearing the bruises for the next few days. Being the second oldest, Raph was constantly competing with Leo for top-turtle. Some days Leo would win their duels, some days it would be Raph, their skill and level of fitness to close to determine who was best, and so that competitiveness was quickly turning into a rivalry.

Donnie…had questions. Questions it seemed his father couldn't provide the answers too. Splinter was wise yes, his advice was sagely and he had a way of explaining, thoughts and feelings. He put them into a perspective that the angst-ridden youths could understand and therefore deal with in a more mature way. But what Splinter couldn't explain, was how things like…why fire was hot. What made water flow so easily, but wear away the stone and mortar of their subterranean home? Why did some stars twinkle, while others simply shone? How did light get into the little glass bulb of his lamp? Why did he have to breathe faster when he was running? What happened to food once it was swallowed?

Splinter tried to answer his questions at first, but as they became more complex and more frequent, and when his answers were met with yet more questions, their fathers patience seemed to dry up. So Donnie stopped asking, to upset he had been the cause of his fathers frustration and anger. He tried to be satisfied with the lessons Splinter gave them every afternoon on reading, writing, art and mathematics…but it was all to easy. Donnie was always the one to finish first but because his brothers needed to at least finish their work, he then had to sit patiently and wait. He didn't mind at first, not everyone was the same and his brothers obviously found these lessons a challenge, he found their morning training just as difficult, but he had far less understanding.

Splinter encouraged his second youngest to keep trying, but when Donatello's long legs was the cause of yet another fall or stumble, their father would point out that Michelangelo, the youngest, had managed to do what he could not. It was meant to inspire him, meant to prove that despite his self-doubt that it was possible. But after hearing it so often, Donatello started to feel inferior and todays training had been the last straw.

With a small huff, Donatello shuffled towards his bed and fished underneath for his most favourite possession in the whole world. His thick fingers curled around the wooden box he kept his secret things in, and with a grunt he pulled it from under the rickety metal-framed bed. It emerged, scraping against the concrete floor of his room, he had to lift the corner a little so he could pull it onto the rug that had been placed there by his father in an attempt the make the room more comfortable. Another sniff and Donnie wiped his eyes dry before pulling the large encyclopaedia from his trove of treasures. The book was almost as big as he was and he needed all of his strength to carry it to the centre of the rug. He set it down with a grunt before making himself comfortable, resting once more on his knees before starting to leaf through the pages which were stained and worn, but it was still readable, and read he had, every day since he found it.

It was the most amazing thing he had ever seen, it had everything in it, everything he had ever wanted to know about anything. Like, what made the buildings of the city so tall, without ever falling down? He had pondered so hard on that one question, especially since every time he tried to make his own blocks stack that high, they would always come crashing down, even before Raph would stomp through them. Then he read this book and realised what he was doing wrong. His next tower would have been just as tall as the buildings on the surface but… he ran out of blocks. Over the course of the next few months he had learned even more about science and technology, figuring out what made things work. Discovering electricity, the dangers and possibilities!

"Hey dork-face," the muffled voice that came through the door was brash and the unkind moniker was always what his older brother Raph called him. "Splinter says to come eat."

"I'm not hungry," Don snapped his voice still stuffy from his earlier breakdown. He panicked and surged to his feet as Raph started to open the door, pushing the feeble barricade along the floor. "Get out! Get out," the younger brother pushed with all his strength against the door, trying desperately to keep it shut but Raph was just so much stronger and Don was cast aside much like the toys and stool.

"I didn't ask if yous was hungry," Raph said sarcastically as he grabbed the collar of Don's purple hoodie and dragged him out of his sanctuary and back down the stairs.

"Raphael!" Their fathers voice echoed from the small make-shift kitchen as he spotted the way the older brother was handling Donnie. "I am sure Donatello is capable of finding his own way to the dinner table."

"Whatever…" Raph muttered under his breath and let go of the fabric he had snatched. Don glared at the back of Raph's head as he continued down the stairs, slipping his hands into the pockets of his own red jacket. They all had similar garments, specifically gathered by Splinter and stitched by him with an extra lining to keep them warm in the drafty, damp sewers. Leo had a dark blue, almost black fleece with a hood, while Mikey wore a pale orange sports jersey.

"Come, get your food before it gets cold." Splinter urged his sons to gather and it wasn't long before they were each in their place, a steaming bowl of hot soup before them. It didn't smell great, but they were each hungry and dipped the crusts of stale bread into the liquid and began to eat. Don was still angry and took a little more time to be able to function comfortably when he could feel Raph glaring at him. "How did your training session go, my sons?" Splinter asked happily, oblivious to the angry vibes emanating from the two middle sons.

"I kicked the bag!" Mikey enthused, his mouth already surrounded by the soup.

"It…could have gone better, sensei." Leo said tactfully, being the oldest he took it upon himself to lead by example. Always getting the training exercises right and pleasing their father.

"Yeah, if the dork didn't mess up every time, we might have actually got it done."

"I have a name, Raphael!"

"Enough!" Splinter raised his voice stopping the argument in its tracks. "What was the problem, Donatello?"

"I couldn't get my feet to do the steps quick enough…" He explained sadly into his soup. "I really did try though." He added, finally meeting the gaze of his father.

"Donnie kicked himself!" Mikey again put in, his huge smile bright. "Then he fell on Raphie."

"It was an accident," Leo explained taking it upon himself to clean Mikey's mouth of the gloop.

"They're always accidents whenever Donnie is around," Raph stated, glaring pointedly at his immediate younger brother who forgot all about his meal, angry once again. "The guy is nothing BUT an accident."

"Raphael!" Splinter admonished his son but it was too late. Donnie stood, slamming his hands down onto the small table, which in reality was just a few planks of wood on some loose bricks. Such was the force of the blow that in the blink of an eye, everyone bar Donnie, was now wearing the contents of the soup bowls.

"See," Raph said as the soup trickled down his face and off the end of his beak.


	3. Chapter 3

It had taken Donatello sometime to clean up the mess he had made, not that he was aware of the passage of time. He simply focused on the act of moving the mop over the soup splattered floor, plopping it into the bucket to clean, before wringing it out to begin the motions once again. All he could think about was how he had lost his temper again, usually it was Raph who was responsible for such outbursts. His father had voiced that very same thought when the shock of the situation abated and the old rat finally wiped away the spoiled meal from his fur. He used tried and tested words often reserved for Raphael after one of his outbursts, though there had been a customary 'I thought you knew better' for Donatello, which only confirmed what the little turtle boy had been thinking.

He was worthless. He couldn't do anything at all that his family found remotely worthwhile and it seemed they were growing wearier of him. Even Leo, who usually stuck up for him, shook his head in disappointment as he took a sobbing Mikey from the dinner disaster to clean up, their younger sibling inconsolable at the loss of his meal, a meal their father often found difficult to put on the table to begin with.

"Donatello!" The sound of his name being called out angrily by their father pulled the young turtle lad from his sombre revere and he stood almost to attention as Splinter stormed towards him with a familiar book in his fury hand. Donnie's eyes widened as he realised sensei had been in his room and had likely saw the contraband laid in the centre of the floor. He new exactly what his father was thinking the second he met the rats angry gaze.

"I can explain…" He stammered meekly, gripping the mop a little tighter, his palms starting to sweat nervously. After the days events his fathers patience was all used up and he wasn't interested in anything the turtle had to say.

"Explanations are not necessary. You went to the surface!"

"No I-"

"You have no idea how disappointed I am with. With YOU." The emphasis Splinter put into the words made the turtle's heart ache with shame. It just confirmed how very sick and tired his father had grown of him.

"Father, please I didn't-"

"You know the rules, you know the dangers! And yet you ignore all I have said on the subject and put yourself and your FAMILY at risk." Splinter shook his head and rubbed his weary eyes. "I thought you knew better than this, Donatello…" The anger was still present in his fathers body language but his voice had fallen eerily calm as he turned and headed towards the old dented wood burning stove. Donnie's mouth ran dry as he realised what was about to happen. He dropped the mop like a hot potato and raced after Splinter, grabbing his robe in a feeble attempt to hold him back from following through with the threat.

"Don't do this! Let me explain!" Donnie begged, not caring he had started to cry. His brothers had gathered at the top of the stairs to see what all the commotion was about, Leo and Mikey looked a little scared while Raph seemed to find it amusing and came running down for a better view.

"I am doing this for your own good, my son." Splinter said as he opened up the stove but before he could throw it in, Donnie managed to grab the front cover. He held on as tightly as he could, desperate to save his book from the flames that licked at the expose pages, but Splinter's strength was far superior and with a simple flick of his wrist, the book tore at the battered spine.

Donnie's eyes grew wide and instantly filled with angry tears as he watched the dry, dirty pages begin to burn. A complex mixture of emotions, anger, sorrow, frustration, suddenly spilled into his chest, welling up into his throat to choke off any words he might have spoken. All he could do was stare at the fire and watch as every word, every picture and diagram became nothing more than ash. His hand, still holding onto the front cover of his precious book gripped it even tighter and the other balled into a fist as anger became the dominant feeling coursing around his young body. It was like a dragon, slowly consuming him. His fathers words were muted as the pounding of his own heart drowned them out.

"…you are to go to your room and think about what you have done," his fathers words finally filtered through the haze as an eerie calm settled into the young turtles being.

"What did I do, exactly?" Donnie asked his voice emotionless as he stood stock-still, eyes fixed to the floor.

"You disobeyed me and-"

"Went to the surface?" Donnie finished and looked up, turning to fix his father with shimmering eyes. As the turtle boy smiled bitterly, the tears fell, tumbling down his pale green complexion. "Is that what I did, to deserve such dreadful treatment, father?"

"Well…" For the first time ever the boys could see uncertainty in their sensei, seemingly caught off guard by the tempest of emotion in his son's eyes.

"The book fell down a storm drain." Donatello stated, more tears falling and his emotionless expression finally cracking to scowl darkly at Splinter. "It fell and I brought it home! I don't now why it fell, or who lost it, I only saw it fall," he sniffed and scrubbed the tears away with the sleeve of his hoodie. "You didn't even let me explain! You didn't even give me a chance! You just took it and-and you burned it, why!? Why!? What did I do to you?! Any of you!? Why do you hate me so much!?" He sobbed the last out, pulling away when his father reached out for him. "Don't touch me!" Donatello screamed, clutching what remained of his book to his chest before running out of the lair.


	4. Chapter 4

What felt like the right thing to do, suddenly became one of the biggest mistakes of his life and as Yoshi looked down into the furious eyes of his second youngest son, his own heart became heavy with the injustice he had inflicted on the boy. Regret filled his heart and he reached for the youth, only to have the normally gentle natured soul pull away in disgust, an act that inflicted yet more shame upon him. It was no more than he deserved but as Donatello's rage grew, his own shame and sorrow was of little concern, for the young turtle looked ready to bolt and that's exactly what he did.

Still holding desperately onto what remained of the book his had attempted to save, Donatello sprinted from Yoshi's grasp.

"My son…" He called out to the boy, but his own voice was weak with emotion he didn't know it was possible to feel. He started after the lad, but Raphael had taken it upon himself to attempt to halt his sibling. His second oldest son was strong and powerful, but Yoshi knew that muscle was weak when compared to will of equal strength, and Donatello was full of determination, fuelled by anger. A dangerous mix. Before Yoshi could warn Raphael to stay back, the shorter lad had already engaged his taller, slimmer brother.

Neither, it seemed, were expecting the outcome that followed. Just as Raphael reached to grab Donatello by the collar, as he so often did when asserting his dominance over the youngest of the pair, Donatello countered. In one fluid movement, Raphael's wrist was grabbed and held firmly as Donatello pivoted, shifting his weight and turning his body. In a blink of an eye, Raphael's was off balance and being lifted up and over Donatello's shell and sent careering towards the wood burning stove.

If it had happened in training, Yoshi certainly would have commended Donatello on the execution of a perfect throw, but the second Raphael hit the stove, Donatello was running once again.

"Wait!" Yoshi called but the furious boy had already gone, leaving his family to pick up the pieces.

"Raph!" Yoshi's attention was drawn by his oldest son as he called out, coming to the aid of his brother who was surrounded by smouldering pages and ash from previous fires. The naked flames that had been knocked from the stove during the collision had also settled on some items of furniture and had to be extinguished quickly or else their few meagre possessions would go up in smoke.

By the time all of the flames had been put out and he had checked that Raphael was not to badly hurt; Donatello was no where in sight.

*.*.*

"That jerk," Raphael snapped as Yoshi applied ointment to a minor burn on his arm. "What's he trying to do, kill us?"

"Does Donnie hate us?" Yoshi's eyes settled on that of his youngest son and who up until now had been shocked into silence. Now he found his voice again, his only concern was for his missing brother. The old rat smiled at Michelangelo before reaching down to scoop the smallest of the brothers into his arms. The little boy cuddled in, his little body still trembling because of the earlier aggression.

"No, Michelangelo. Donatello is just upset."

"Is he gonna come back?"

"If he knows what's good for him, he'll stay gone." Raphael hopped down from the table rubbing his now bandaged arm. "I'm gonna teach that punk a lesson,"

"Raphael, any injuries you have suffered have largely been self inflicted."

"What so I upped n' threw myself into the damn stove?"

"When you are the one to start a fight, you are responsible for the outcome." Raphael looked away and while the lad was still angry, Yoshi was glad at least he had taken his teachings seriously. With Michelangelo now settled, the aging ninja placed him in the waiting arms of Leonardo. "Raphael, I expect our home to be returned to its former order by the time I return."

"Hai sensei."

"Where are you going, sensei?" Leonardo asked as all three watched their father done his robe, the one he usually wore when his scavenging took him to the surface.

"To find your brother." Yoshi got down to one knee and put a hand on each of his remaining sons shoulder, looking them each in the eye. He hated leaving them alone, but he didn't have many options. When food was low, or one of them was sick, his journeys to the surface were imperative. He was confident in his own ninja abilities and he was never seen, but the worry for his sons alone back in their home was always on his mind, and there had been many mistakes made by the aging master because of this, though thankfully all had been minor and had resulted in nothing more than a delay to his return. "Leonardo is in charge, if I am not back before dark, there are snacks you can eat."

"I don't when it's dark…" Michelangelo muttered and Yoshi gave him an extra hug for good measure.

"I will be back before you know it. I promise." He smiled confidently and large blue eyes full of adoration and love shone back brightly. "Stay together," he then turned to Raphael. "No more fighting, we only have each other." To his delight Raphael nodded with a sigh. With an affectionate scrub to the top of his head, Yoshi headed into the sewers.


	5. Chapter 5

After running deep into the sewers that surrounded their home, Donatello stopped for a few minutes to get his breath back. Like before, as soon as his anger started to ebb, clear, rational thought began to take over once again and he soon found he was lost.

With a sigh, Donatello looked down at the crumpled book cover and his heart ached all over again for, not only the loss, but for the absolute mess he had left behind. The things he had said and done in anger made him cringe in shame and he turned, punching the wall hard enough to scrape the skin from his knuckles. The pain that exploded in his hand actually made him feel a little better, in a way he had been punished for at least some of the things he had done, but not all. He scowled at his bloody knuckles before shaking the hurt out of the limb while looking around for a familiar tunnel. He was so blinded by his earlier rage and distress that he couldn't even remember which one he had came through.

"Great…" He flopped down to sit on the metal walkway, resting his chin on the guard rail and dangling his legs over the edge. Below him a vast torrent of water fell deeper into the system, there was so much of it, that the spray it kicked up reached all the way back up to cool his warm flushed face.

He looked once more at the book cover and tried to smooth out the pages that were still attached. Not much had survived; all he had left was the cover and the first page of the forward. But on the inside of the cover was another slip of paper which had been glued there some time after purchase. He'd seen these slips before on other books and hadn't given them much notice, but since he was at a loss for something to read he finally realised what they were.

"Property of Roosevelt High School Library," he read, his eyes lighting up with the realisation. "If lost, please return to… an address!" Donnie stood holding the cover like it was a lifeline. "They're bound to have more books, maybe even another copy of this one." He smiled as he committed the address to his memory before crumpling up the cover one last time and letting it go. His expression darkened as he watched the paper disappear into the swirling waters below. What he had planned was dangerous, he knew that but… he had been punished severely for doing something he wasn't guilty of, the way he saw it, since he had done the time, he may as well do the crime.

*.*.*

Finding the place had been easy, once he had figured out where he was Donnie was able to retrace his steps back to where the book had fallen down in the first place. He figured the school wouldn't be far from there and he was right. Once he got to the street level and peered out across the tarmac of the road, he could see a large building right in front of him. With a gap-toothed smile, Donnie hopped down and worked out which tunnel led directly back towards the school and headed in.

After some wrong turns and dead ends, Donnie's patience was rewarded. With a grunt he managed to lift a heavy steel grate that led into some forgotten basement. The turtle boy clambered up into what looked like a shower room, but the taps and fittings were broken and rusted. The tiles of the room were stained and cracked and it was completely closed off, no doors or windows to be seen. The only light source came from the torch Donnie always kept in his pocket, useful for when he was reading in the night. He looked around searching for a way out, eventually finding an old ventilation system built into the wall. After prying the cover off, Donnie crept inside, scaring the local rat inhabitants who quickly scurried further in. They obviously had another way out and so Donnie shuffled along the confined space, climbing up when he needed and marking the way he'd came by scratching arrows into the surface of the metal.

After half an hour of shuffling around it started to get lighter. With renewed determination, Donnie picked up the pace and smiled brightly at what he saw at the next grilled window. He was looking down into a dimly lit hallway, with metal lockers lined up along the wall. He could just about make out the corner of a glass case with trophies and various posters if he pressed his beak right up against the dusty metal, but he quickly shrank back when he heard a faint whistled tune getting louder. He stilled his body and breathing as he watched an elderly janitor push his cleaning supplies back into a storage area before leaving, turning off the lights as he went.

Donnie remained in the vent for some time after the janitor had left. He had to be careful; he was alone and in the surface world. A world he had been told time and time again by Splinter, held many dangers for them. If anyone saw them, they would be taken away and experimented on by evil, heartless scientists. After everything he had been told about these science-people, Donatello should have been terrified by them, and he was, but when he realised these self same people had made it possible to fly and to go into space. That they had worked out how to save lives from disease and injury…if they had managed to do so much good for the people of the world, then not all of them could be bad. He felt in his heart this was the truth, so when he finally slipped down out of the vent, he didn't feel so scared anymore.

The school was deserted and cast in complete shadow. The little ninja in training smiled to himself and pulled up his hood before stealthily sprinting from shadow to shadow.

The place was huge and every room had something different inside. Some rooms were just full of desks all facing a board or screen. Some had computers and Donnie found these particularly interesting. He sat for sometime tapping at the keys and working the curser instrument, slowly figuring out how it worked. By midnight he was able to open web pages and search for all kinds of information. His eyes scanned each page of every topic he had ever wondered about, but a lot of the pages were incomplete, or raised even more questions, that meant he had to do another web search. He had come looking for books, but what he'd found instead, was every book, ever written in one machine. It was amazing! The amount of information at his fingertips made him very excited and he wished so much he could take one with him, but it was big and bulky and would likely get damaged on the way back to the lair… and even if he did some how manage to get it there safely, Splinter would probably burn it too.

The young turtle sighed and looked longingly at a page advertising portable computers called 'laptops'. His smile lit up the room when he clicked a button saying 'get it now', but rather than provide him with the machine, he was taken to another page where he had to input some kind of coded information, consisting of sixteen digits. He tried every combination he could think of, but none of them seemed to work.

Having given up, Donnie left the computers alone to explore the rest of the school. He still had to find the library and luckily the way was marked. He followed the signs along the hall that indicated where various rooms and labs where, before in the wee small hours of the morning, he finally stumbled upon it. This was by far one of the biggest rooms he had seen so far. All three floors of the building had been dedicated to the library and on each level there were shelves of books. Donnie laughed and giggled as he flittered from shelf to shelf, reading through the ones that intrigued him. It was only as the sun was coming up did the young turtle realise how long he had been there and panic set in. He grabbed two of the books he had found and wanted to read through and stuffed them into his pockets before racing back towards his way out.

A familiar whistling echoed from ahead and Donnie froze as he spied a janitor shaped shadow growing smaller on the wall ahead. With fewer places to hide, Donnie was in big trouble. He felt sure he could outrun the guy, but he didn't want to be seen at all, he wanted to return and he couldn't do that if he was discovered. With a second to spare, Donnie dove into one of the classrooms and looked for a place to hide. The room wasn't like many of the other classrooms. This one was more like a lab. It had benches instead of desks, with high stools for the students to rest on. The benches had various pieces of scientific equipment, beakers and Bunsen Burners. The desk at the front of the classroom was another bench, with a large well used blackboard behind it. Donnie's eyes glanced at the numbers and formula on the board; his young mind absorbing it like water did a sponge. The whistling was louder behind him and he quickly ran to the front of the classroom to hide. Panic had overcome him and he was not as stealthy as he would have liked. As he ducked under the bench, he knocked a pile of papers to the floor. In his panic he caught one before it could flutter out of the door and alert the approaching janitor but he crackle of the paper was more than enough to alert the elderly human and Donnie's hiding place was no longer secure.


	6. Chapter 6

"Is some one in there?" Donatello froze as the janitor called out, his foot steps getting louder and the little turtle boy found he couldn't move but with a second to spare, the ninja in training scurried to a smaller room to the right of the blackboard and slowly pulled the door too.

He was in some kind of cloakroom. It had a single high window barely visible behind a large cupboard. Running along three of the walls were shelves holding all kinds of scientific equipment, only the top shelf was clear of any obstructions and so as the janitor stepped into the lab behind him, Donnie leapt up to the dusty top shelf and shuffled into the darkest corner. From his position, Donnie could see through the window above the door that looked into the classroom. The janitor had left after cleaning up the spilled paper that the turtle boy had unsettled in his bid to find a hideaway, but in the few minutes he had been stuck in there the entire school had came to life. He could hear the faint voices and laughter of the students as they made their way into the school grounds. At first he thought he was hearing things but upon shuffling to the tiny window that looked out at the outside world his eyes confirmed what his ears already knew.

"Oh no..." There was no way Donnie was going to be able to leave now, if he did he was sure to be seen and by so many. The little mutant slumped back, hands dropping to his side as he watched the children spill into the school grounds while cars filled in one by one carrying the adults who Donnie guessed were the teachers. Pretty soon the sounds of the people filled every corner of the building including the classroom he was trapped inside.

Being as quiet as possible, Donnie shuffled back over to the window above the door, looking down at the classroom beyond. An old man had entered the room carrying a briefcase and his coat. He was partially bald but the hair he did have, grew around the sides and back of his head and was down to his shoulders. He was also quite short compared to the only other adult Donnie had ever seen, and was a little round in the middle. Donnie watched as the odd looking fellow approach the cloakroom with his coat and reached for the handle. On instinct the little ninja pressed back against the wall, the shadows of the smaller room spilling around him like a protective embrace just as the door opened. The human came in, humming a cheerful tune as he put his coat on a nearby hook, cleared his throat as he adjusted his pants before heading back into the classroom closing the cloakroom door behind him.

Donnie let go of the breath he was holding and relaxed once he was alone, that had been too close... how was he meant to stay hidden the whole day and not die of fright every time one of the humans got too close? His heart was beating so fast it felt like it was going to burst right out of his plastron.

"How does sensei do this?" He asked himself quietly as he wiped the nervous sweat from his face and pushed his hood back. He watched once more through the window above the door as the first students of the day came bounding into the room. Donnie had never seen so many humans at once and these were nothing like the humans he and his family had seen sometimes in the sewers. These humans were a lot smaller and didn't wear any protective gear. There were so many different types of human, boy and girl, tall and short, large and small, with different coloured hair, with outrageous and sensible styles. Most entered the lab quietly and respectfully, but there was one group of boys who were more rambunctious than most.

"Alright, settle down everyone," The older man addressed the human teens who by now had found their seats. "I know you're all very excited about the test I have here for you," Donnie smiled as he listened to the kids groan simultaneously, it reminded him of his brothers when ever Splinter done the same. His smile faded as the sorrow from the day before returned and he realised just how much he loved them, even if they didn't feel the same. All he wanted to do was go home, now especially when it seemed he was as far from home as he had ever been…

"You each have an hour to complete the test," the teacher continued to explain as he handed out sheets of paper. "Return then to me for marking and tomorrow we'll all find out who's been paying attention this semester." Donnie looked down at the sheet still crumpled in his own hand, realising this test was the paper he had knocked in his attempts to hide earlier. He unfurled it and scanned the questions and smiled.

"These are easy…" He muttered and shuffled back onto the shelf, making himself comfortable as he began to fill in the questions.


	7. Chapter 7

It had been a very long day and Professor Holt's smile, while still there, had turned to a weary one as the last student left the classroom. He had been teaching now for almost thirty years and he had no doubt in his mind that he had chosen the right calling. He loved science and he loved teaching it. It had been a long time since he had been a boy, fascinated with the mysteries his own professor had explained to him and more fascinated by the ones he could not, so much still to discover, always so much still to learn and that's what he loved about the subject.

The day had been especially long and Holt was looking forward to going home early, even if he was going to spend a large portion of the night marking the paper he had set the seniors that morning. A large mug of hot chocolate and marshmallows would take the edge of that particular task and so as he gathered up the papers he was so focused on that treat, he almost didn't notice one of the papers flutter to the floor at his feet.

The test paper was battered and crumpled and at first Holt considered one of his students to have abused the paper thusly in frustration, but on closer inspection every question had been answered…but in red pen. He tutted as he picked it up, his students knew better than that, or at least he thought that did. With and sigh he glanced over the first few answers, surprised to see they were correct.

"A serious attempt," Holt smiled and placed the paper on the pile in his arms. He would mark it along with the others, but he would have to deduct a few marks for the use of an inappropriate ink, harsh maybe, but if this student had done this on a final exam paper, the whole grade would be lost. This was a sure way to ensure the student would never make this mistake again.

Happily humming his favourite piece of music, Holt bid a good night to the janitor who was finishing up his own work, before heading to his car. He couldn't wait for his hot chocolate.

*.*.*

The dinner table had never been this quiet and Yoshi sighed sadly as he joined his three remaining sons at the meal he had just warmed up for them. It was another soup with what remained of the bread. Usually his sons would have started to eat as soon as the food hit the bowls, but their appetites didn't seem to be there. His own was absent, the only reason he ate now was to keep up his strength, he would need it when he resumed his search for Donatello. The only reason he was not looking now, was because his other sons needed food and care, and while they had been pleased at his return, they had expected him to return with their brother.

Michelangelo was the most affected by the absence of his immediate older brother; Donatello was young enough to relate to the youngest brother but also old enough to be protective of his sibling. The smallest turtle brother hung his head low, till his beak was almost in the soup and he sniffed softly. Splinter put a gentle hand on his son, seeing the lad hop down from his seat and close in for a hug.

Leonardo met his fathers eyes before looking back down at his own barely touch meal and Raphael wordlessly stirred the contents of his bowl, trying to retain the illusion that he did not care by telling them they were all being stupid. Splinter couldn't bring himself to scold his second oldest, instead he continued to rub soothing circles into the shell of Michelangelo, taking just as much comfort from the little arms around him, as Michelangelo took from him.

"Try not to worry, my sons."

"Who's worried?" Raphael said with a shrug.

"I am! I want Donnie back; it's not right without him." Splinter held Michelangelo tighter as his sobs wracked his small frame. "I shouldn't have laughed when he fell, it's my fault he thinks I hate him."

"It's not your fault, Mikey," Leonardo said sadly. "I didn't look out for him like I should. I should have realised how unhappy he was…"

"Prfft…" Raphael huffed as he sat back folding his arms, not meeting their eyes. "Yeah, sure. It's all down to you not kissing ass."

"Like you're blameless?" Leonardo stood, hands pressed against the table and blue eyes hard as they challenged Raphael who stood, mirroring the oldest brothers stance.

"Hey I ain't not blaming anybody, least of all me. I know's what I said and I know's what I did to the dork," Raphael's hard gaze softened, his shoulders slumped and for the first time Splinter got a glimpse of the boys true feelings. "But I sure ain't gonna sit here and talk about how differently I'd treat him, or should have," Leonardo relaxed a little and Michelangelo sniffed, listening to his older brother. Splinter for his part kept quiet, he knew what Raphael was about to say. "If he was here now, I'd still call him dork. I'd still push him around and I'd still find him annoying. He's my brother." Raphael sat back down, going back to stirring his soup. It was about as close as the boy would ever come to admitting he cared about anyone. It was just his way.

"We have all contributed in some way to the feelings that caused Donatello too flee the safety of our home; I myself am guiltier than anyone of you. What I did was unforgiveable." A small green hand stroked the fur of his chest and Splinter smiled appreciatively down at Michelangelo who was still perched comfortably on his knee. "I care so much about all of you and I know all too well, the dangers that await us if we are ever discovered. When I thought Donatello had gone to the surface, I let my fear control me."

"Just tell Donny that," Michelangelo said with a sniffle. "I'm sure he won't be mad any more." Splinter smiled and set the boy back in front of his meal.

"I hope you are right, my son."


	8. Chapter 8

With the school empty once more, Donatello quickly found his way back through the ventilation system, down the open grate in the forgotten basement, till he was finally back in the familiar surroundings of the sewers. It was only now he was back on familiar ground and on his way back home did he realise how long he had truly been gone. A whole night and day and his stomach chose to punish him for the neglect he had inflicted upon it. Donnie held his midsection as it growled fiercely and proceeded to ache. It literally felt like his entire middle had disappeared and nothing was there. The turtle boy groaned in self pity as he hurried through the tunnels back towards the lair, stopping only once to hide the books he had taken in a hollow part of the wall just a few yards from home. He didn't want to chance that these would be burned also.

Once the lair was in sight, Donnie paused. He knew he had to return, it was after all home and as bad as they could be some times, they were his family and he cared about them, but there was always that one voice, whispering softly in the back of his mind, that they might not even want him back. They might even have been happier while he had been away. The thoughts caused a lump to swell in his throat, making it hard to breathe. He was about to turn and walk in the opposite direction when he felt the presence approach, his senses had begun to be honed by the training provided by sensei, but it surprised Donnie that those feelings and senses could be so strong and exact. The young mutant turtle looked up, meeting the stunned gaze of his father and the lump was replaced by a dryness, making it hard to speak.

For a long moment nothing happened, the pair just remained staring at one another. Donnie was scarred for the scolding that was sure to come, after all he had shouted at his parent and teacher, fought with his brother, trashed the lair and had been missing for a whole day, he felt sure the punishment of a lifetime was about to be unleashed. Instead, the aging rat simply ran forward, fell to his knees and scooped the exhausted turtle into his warm embrace.

"My son… my son!" Splinter squeezed him tighty, but Donnie didn't mind, it felt good and all of the doubts and fears he had about not being loved melted away in that one moment.

"I'm sorry!" He choked out around sobs and hiccups as the flood gates opened.

"No, I am sorry." His father's voice was rougher than usual and Donnie's heart broke a little more at the thought of his father crying too. "What I did was so wrong, for so many reasons. I should not have doubted you." It felt good to hear his father apologise too and he could feel of the earlier anger and animosity draining out of him. He sagged against his father's chest, holding on with gentle arms as Splinter carried him back into the familiar surroundings of their home. "I looked everywhere for you, all night and all day I searched. Where have you been?"

"I-I got lost." He sniffed. It wasn't a total lie. At first he was, but to explain all that he had been up to that day would likely make his father angry and he didn't have the energy to handle it, neither did his father if the look in his eyes was anything to go by.

"Well, you are home now. That is all that matters." After one final squeeze Donatello was set back down. He sniffed and wiped his eyes along his sleeve as he fell into step beside Splinter, his fathers supporting hand still on his shoulder as they entered the lair. As soon as he stepped past the threshold, Donnie could feel the tense atmosphere and the silence of the place was strange. Usually Mickey would have been running around making all kinds of noise while he played with his action figures and Raph and Leo would have been arguing or fighting. But it was deathly silent, until the youngest of the brothers noticed Donnie was there.

"Donnie!" Mickey scrambled to his feet from where he had been laying on the floor, just staring at the ceiling. His younger brother close the gap between them in the blink of an eye and soon had Donnie in a vice like hug, almost knocking him over with the impact. "I'm glad you're home bro," Don smiled and returned the hug, lowering to one knee so he was on the same level with his much smaller brother.

"Me too Mikey," As the embrace ended Donnie could see both Raph and Leo stood watching. Leo was smiling but Raph looked just as annoyed as ever but as he approached, the hot-headed older brother finally smiled, albeit briefly before proceeding to scrub the top of Donnie's head in an almost affectionate manor.

"Where the shell have you been, bro?" Raph asked but all Donnie could do was shrug.

"You really had us all worried, Donnie." Leo added, his expression adopting that familiar disapproving look. "What were you thinking? You could have been hurt or been seen or-"

"I'm really sorry," Donnie put in, looking down at his feet. He never thought they would worry so much about him; he had convinced himself over the course of the last few weeks that they really didn't care about him at all. A small hand filled his and Mikey stepped forward to intervene.

"Cut it out Leo, that doesn't matter now. Donnie's back and that's it."

"I agree with Michelangelo," Splinter said proudly and Donnie once again felt that supportive hand on his shoulder. "Donatello has come back home safely and for that I am truly thankful. Yesterday's events should not just be forgotten, however. We do need to talk about it, but for now I'll fix you something to eat and then you can rest." Donnie had been trying to stifle the yawn, not wanting to disrespect his sensei by doing that while he wad talking, but it was no use. Aside from not eating a bite since the day before, he hadn't slept more than a few minutes in the last twenty-four hours and it was obvious to anyone Donnie was fit to drop.

Splinter led the way to the kitchen and Donnie was pulled along by Mikey and flanked by his two older brothers, both of them having closed in almost as if they were scared he would run away again. It was a nice, feeling that he belonged again, but even as he sat down at the table and took the first taste of the soup his father had reheated for him, his young mind, hungry for answers, drifted back to the wonders he had discovered in the school. He had to find a way to get back there and without his family knowing. He felt terrible, just thinking about doing something so bad made his stomach turn, but he had too. In one day alone he had learned more than his entire life so far and he knew there was knowledge that he could then use to help them in their lives down in the sewers. He already knew a little about electronics thanks to his research. All he had to do was read the information once and it became locked in his mind. He smiled as he recalled one of the books he had read through, the words of the page appearing in his mind as clearly as if he had the book before him. As far as he could tell, no other member of his family could do this. His Ninjitsu might be the worst of the four of them, he wasn't the strongest, fastest or the most agile of his siblings, but he was the smartest and he was determined that would be what he contributed to his family. Being of use to them, being able to help in some way…it was worth any risk.


End file.
